


The Sun and The Night Sky

by mishenjared



Category: Dead Poets Society (1989)
Genre: M/M, The Proposal AU, fake relationship au, i'm too weak against anderperry, the fake relationship doesn't last for too long and i'm sorry
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-01-19
Updated: 2015-01-19
Packaged: 2018-03-08 05:40:27
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 12,426
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3197450
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/mishenjared/pseuds/mishenjared
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Everyone in Neil Perry's life is moving forward: getting married, getting dogs, getting promotions. Meanwhile, he's too busy trying to pay the bills on time with his barely-there acting career. Thankfully, he's got Todd Anderson, a successful book editor at Colden Books, as his roommate. So when Todd comes home with the news that he was getting deported, Neil wanted to help him stay. And besides, it's not like it's entirely Todd's fault they were in this situation.</p>
            </blockquote>





	The Sun and The Night Sky

**Author's Note:**

  * For [dontchasethesheep](https://archiveofourown.org/users/dontchasethesheep/gifts).



> A very late Christmas gift.

_RING!_

Why Neil chose the same ringtone for his parents as his alarm clock, he didn't know. Every time they called, he was just filled with an unpleasant sense of foreboding, like something was about to go terribly wrong.  
  
_RING! RING! RING!_

He dropped the script he was currently reading on the table and started tracing where the sound was coming from.  
  
"Where did I put it, where did I put it," Neil mumbled to himself, scrambling around his less-than-clean bedroom which doubled as his study and tripled as the living room. The small apartment was really nothing to brag about, but it was all he could afford here in New York as an up-and-coming actor with a meager day job.  
  
He finally spotted it tucked in between two other manuscripts. He thanked his lucky stars that he didn't put it on silent mode, or else he'd be looking for it all day.  
  
"Hello, father?" Neil nervously answered, pushing his glasses up to his forehead.  
  
"Neil. What took you so long to answer?" asked his father.  
  
"Uh." Neil quickly tried to make up an answer that didn't involve saying 'I lost my phone in the mess that is my room' to the old man. "I was reading. Sorry. You called?"  
  
"Oh yes, I just wanted to remind you that it's your mother's birthday this weekend." Neil swallowed a wince. He actually forgot about that. "Considering that it's been three years since you last came home, maybe you can abandon the city life and that...  _job_  of yours to come visit us."  
  
Neil's chest tightened in anger. His father has always despised the fact that he persisted with acting and flew to New York the first chance he got. "Father, I—"  
  
"Oh, is that Neil? Let me talk to my little boy," his mother interrupted. Neil's rage melted away into a mix of relief and guilt. There was some shuffling on the other end of the line before his mother's voice clearly rang through the phone. "Neil, darling?"  
  
"Mom, I'm here."  
  
"Are you coming home this weekend, darling? I know you're probably busy rehearsing for a play and whatnot, but come make an exception for your old woman. I'm turning fifty-five, can you believe it? Doesn't happen every year."  
  
Neil looked over at his calendar. He has work during the weekend, but he  _does_  have those days-off he never used.... "I think I can make it. Yeah, I'll make it Friday night—"  
  
"Oh, that's splendid! I'm so glad. And you'll be home just in time for Ginny's wedding—"  
  
Neil's hand gripped the edge of the table. "Wait, wait. Ginny's wedding? As in Ginny Danburry?"  
  
"Yes, why?" His mother asked innocently. Neil gritted his teeth. "Oh, oh dear, I am so sorry. I thought you were already over her—"  
  
"It's okay," Neil lied, his voice just a bit higher than normal. "I'm over it. Her. I'm over her. We both are. Uh. When did she get engaged?"  
  
"Oh, about three months ago, back when same-sex marriage was legalized here. And to Chris Noel, too! Quite a match, those two. Didn't quite expect Ginny to play for the other team, though."

_Ginny got engaged to her best friend. Who would've known._

"How about you, dear?"  
  
"What?"  
  
"Do you have anyone that we haven't heard about? I mean, none of us are getting younger. You're already twenty-seven years old."  
  
Before he could change the subject to something that wasn't about his disastrous love life, another voice resonated in the small apartment, followed by the sound of the closing of the front door. It was his roommate, Todd Anderson. He helped with a ton of the bills, so Neil owed him a big deal. He was the only one between them with a decent pay, after all.

"Neil? I know your shift just finished. Come on out. I bought some take out from that place you've been  _raving_  about for days."

"Oh dear, who's that? Your boyfriend?" His mother asked curiously. Meanwhile, Neil opened the door to his room. Todd's blond head was speckled with snowflakes as he held up the small boxes with a small smile. Neil put a finger to his mouth and gestured to his phone. Todd flushed in embarrassment and meekly apologized. "Honey, our son has a boyfriend!"  
  
"What, no, mom, I don't—"  
  
"Really? That's splendid! I thought our son was never going to get anyone," intruded his father. "It would be no surprise, though. No one would would be willing to date someone without a proper job."  
  
"No, dad, you know what?" Neil snarled, reason thrown out of the window. He felt his blood boiling. "He's my fiancé. Todd Anderson and I are getting married. How 'bout that? He's gonna marry  _my_  poor ass."  
  
At the very next second, three people shouted 'Neil!' in varying emotions. Mr. Perry was, of course, in great rage over the fact that his son cursed. Mrs. Perry was in tremendous joy that her son was finally getting married. Todd, who was busy preparing dinner as quietly as he could, was in unparalleled shock.  
  
"Oh, Neil! This is wonderful news," exclaimed his mother. "You must bring him over with you. I  _must_  meet my future son-in-law. Oh, I'm so excited! Our little boy's finally getting married. This is the best birthday gift I have ever received! ...Oh my, your father's speechless."  
  
Neil, basking in the joy of rendering his father into silence, promised his mother that Todd will come over to meet them. "See you in two days. Okay, bye."   
  
And with that, he turned his phone off, only to be met with an unreadable expression on his roommate's face. "So, we're getting married, huh? I don't think I ever got the memo," uttered Todd after a few minutes of tense silence.

Neil immediately started apologizing and begging, saying that they'll get a divorce right after, no sweat, but Todd held his hand up to shush him. "Sit down, Neil," ordered the blond, his expression still unreadable.

Neil obediently did as he asked. His knee started jumping up and down.

Todd leaned on the dining table with a hand. "I... Actually. Uh, I'm not angry. I'm...  _okay_  with this thing happening."

Neil breathed a sigh of relief. "Thank you so much. You have no idea how much this means to me and to my mom. Wow, I'm finally gonna have the opportunity to stick it to my dad. Oh wait, does this mean we have to have matching rings? And who proposed? What's our proposal story? Do we tell your brother or nah?"

"Jesus, Neil, calm down," said Todd, sitting himself down and grabbing the chopsticks. "Have you even considered  _why_  I'm alright with this steaming pile of shit you just put on my front door?"

"Uh, because you're the nicest person I've ever met?" reasoned Neil, starting to eat now that he didn't feel like puking.

Todd barked out a small laugh. "Flattery gets you everywhere, but that's not the case here."

"Then what  _ish_  the caysh?" asked the brunet, mouth full of fried rice and chicken feet.

Todd's face turned serious once more. "I, uh," He took a deep breath before continuing. "I'mgettingdeportedsoIneedsomeoneAmericantomarryme."

Neil spit half of whatever's in his mouth in surprise. He gulped the rest down before replying. "You're  _what_?"

" _Getting deported_ ," repeated Todd. He put his face into his hands. "And that means I'll lose my job. The renewal application for my visa got denied because I went to the stupid Frankfurt Book Fair!"

"Didn't your boss  _make_  you go? Also, wasn't your meeting with that writer person a success?"

"Margaret Tate's a  _witch,_ " Todd said, the words coming out of his mouth like they were curses. He still had his head on his palms. "She made  _me_  go because she's also getting her own visa renewed  _and_  she hates me. She wants to get me booted out of my position because hers is threatened. I took the bait because I  _knew_  I was going to win against Viking. I thought that my excuse was going to be valid since, yes, I went home with DeLillo in my pocket, but apparently, the government doesn't care who publishes Don DeLillo. I was actually going to ask you to help me out with this, but you came first—"

"Todd?" interrupted Neil.

"What?" asked Todd, raising his head. He almost audibly gasped at the sight.

Neil was on one knee beside Todd's chair, two hands beholding a makeshift ring made out of the chopstick wrappers. "Todd Anderson, you Canadian book nerd," started Neil with a laugh on his lips, "will you marry my poor, American ass?"

Todd laughed so hard before he could say 'yes.' Neil realized that he loved seeing Todd laugh after being so miserable.

* * *

Even though it was half past eight in the evening, Todd decided that they should at least look the part.

"This plastic ring is not gonna cut it when I tell them at work tomorrow, you know?" Todd said, lying down on Neil's bed as he looked at the ring sitting on his ring finger. Right after eating, they migrated to Neil's room to maybe catch a decent movie on HBO, as they always did. The most recent Transformers movie was on.

Neil, hardly interested in action movies but a little bit in Mark Wahlberg, divided his attention between the movie and the script for a play he had been accepted into a leading role for. But now that Todd spoke, he gave up on the movie. "Are you suggesting what I think you're suggesting?" He asked, suspicious of the other man's intentions. He pushed up his glasses on the bridge of his nose. "I don't have the money. I'm piss poor, remember? That's why we're living together."

"But I'm not," Todd reasoned. "I've got a little bit of money left since we lived on bread for the past few days. We can use that for two mediocre rings. And besides, will your family believe we're engaged if we don't have rings?"

Neil wanted to tell him that yes, they will, especially his shithead of a father, since both of them knew he was tight on money, but he didn't. If it's because he didn't want to talk about his father or because he agreed with Todd's reasoning, he didn't know. So they headed out and scoured the nearest jewelry stores for the cheapest pair of rings they could afford.

"They don't look half bad," murmured Neil as Todd drove them home in his sedan. The rings weren't anything special; they were just the generic kind of rings with no special adornments nor expensive rocks. And yet the brunet found himself appreciating the way the gold bands on their hands glinted against the streetlamps. He was especially mesmerized with Todd's as the blond turned a corner.

"Right?" hummed Todd in agreement. "Now maybe our lie will look more believable in front of my bosses."

* * *

They met the immigration officer the very next day after Todd told his superiors of his plans, including Margaret Tate. Margaret looked unconvinced at the very least, but Todd paid her no heed, since the higher-ups heavily hinted at a promotion once the whole mess blew over.

"Getting DeLillo is still a remarkable feat; do not think we have forgotten that," said John Keating, one of the executive editors. "Now make it legal. And congratulations, Mr. Anderson, on the engagement."

The original plan was for them to submit the petition for the fiance visa, but instead the man at the counter gave them a concerned look and got on the phone. A few minutes later, they were sitting in an empty office, waiting for someone important to meet them.

"What do you think's going on?" Neil whispered to Todd, even though there was no one else to hear them.

"I don't know," replied Todd, rubbing the bridge of his nose. "But I've got a really bad feeling about this."

Then Todd felt a familiar hand on his shoulder.

"Hey, it's gonna be alright," Neil reassured him, his hand now rubbing his back. He felt the ring on Neil's hand brushing him slightly.

But Todd didn't have much time to revel in the sense of security that gesture gave him - a man opened the door to the office and introduced himself promptly as 'Mr. Gilbertson.' Neil put his hand away and greeted the man appropriately. Todd followed suit.

"So, I have a question for you," the man started as he sat down on his chair, "are you both committing fraud to avoid his deportation so he can keep his position and his nearing promotion at Colden Books?"

Todd felt like somebody punched the air out of his lungs.

"Um, no, that's ridiculous. I'm offended you'd think that," Neil countered, lying smoothly. Todd felt a rush of relief; what are actors for, right?

"Then why is it I got a phone tip just before you came in—"

"Is it from Margaret Tate?" Todd interrupted, blood rushing to his head. "Because if it is, then I'd be happy to tell you that she's the one who got my renewal application denied."

"Is that right?" Mr. Gilbertson asked, looking at Neil.

"Ms. Tate's kind of like his boss," Neil explained, recollecting Todd's stories. "She made him go to this book fair in Germany instead of her since, coincidentally, she was also having her visa renewed. And she's hated him ever since the dawn of time, so."

The man sat back in his chair, seemingly satisfied with the explanation. "Well, I'll look into that. Now, let me explain to you the process that's about to unfold. Step one, I'll put you each in a room, and I'll ask you every little question that a real couple would know about each other. If your answers don't match up at every point, you—" Mr. Gilbertson waggled his finger at Todd, who, with each word that came out of the officer's mouth, grew more and more anxious "—will get deported. Step two, I'll dig deeper. I'll look at your phone records, I'll talk to your neighbors, I'll interview your friends. And you, young man—" Now Mr. Gilbertson pointed at Neil "—will have committed a felony punishable by a fine of two hundred fifty thousand dollars and a stay of five years in federal prison."

Neil obviously became daunted at the enormity of it all, Todd observed, and his confident facade faltered for a moment. But only for a moment.

Before Mr. Gilbertson continued, Neil opened his mouth. "If you're trying to scare me into 'admitting'—" Neil made air quotes with one hand "—that we're faking our engagement, then I'm sorry, Mr. Gilbertson, because what we have is the realest thing I have ever experienced. From the oft-cancelled plays and day jobs I keep getting fired from, Todd's been the only stable thing in my life, even before we started dating. Our engagement has made me the happiest man in this world, believe me. And I have no doubt our marriage will only make me happier."

Mr. Gilbertson folded his arms and pursed his lips. "Alright. So have you told anyone at all about this big, gigantic love of yours?"

Neil laughed, which made Todd smile, too. "We haven't come out to our friends since I never felt confident about it, but I'm pretty sure they all know. They've been teasing us for years. They won't be surprised at the news of our engagement."

Neil wasn't completely lying. Steven Meeks and Gerard Pitts have been ribbing them about their questionable relationship. A little truth mixed in with a lie is always effective.

"How about your parents?"

"Mine are homophobic," explained Todd. "No one in my family knows I'm attracted to men. I hope you understand."

"And how about  _your_  family?" Mr. Gilbertson pressed Neil.

"We were just about to tell them this weekend, since I'm coming home for the first time in three years for my mom's fifty-fifth birthday." Neil said.

"We thought it would be a nice surprise," added Todd.

"And where is this surprise going to take place?" Mr. Gilbertson asked, starting to look more and more convinced by the second.

"Sitka," answered Neil. "Alaska."

* * *

"We've been living together for three years and I didn't even know you're from Alaska," said Todd, looking outside the window with open amazement, the rough turbulence forgotten. The interview questions on his lap fell quietly on the floor. "Where I'm from is closer to New York and  _I'm_  the one in danger of getting deported."

The view of the snow-capped mountains and low-drifting clouds was something that Neil was used to, but seeing it warmed his heart nonetheless; it was still home, after all, and it was something he hadn't seen in three years.

"Hey, come to think of it," started Todd, now sitting back properly in his seat after a particularly hard bump. He reached for the papers and arranged them. "You haven't gone home once in the whole time. In fact, you didn't talk about your hometown nor your family at all."

Neil cleared his throat and shifted uncomfortably as far as the seat belt allowed him. "It's not much of a pleasant memory."

"Oh," replied Todd, looking like he just stepped on a puppy.

Neil sighed through his nose. "Don't feel sorry. It's not your fault it's something I don't feel comfortable talking about."

"Well, even then, you don't have to if you don't feel like it. And besides," Todd said, looking back out at the mountains, "I'm gonna to see for myself soon enough." Then he cleared his throat. "Hey, it's your turn to ask me some questions."

Neil looked at the papers in Todd's hand, glad for the change in topic. "Okay, this one should be good: do I have any scars?"

Todd thought for a single beat before answering, "You have some little ones all over your body, but there's a pretty big one just above and beside your right hipbone. Care telling me what that's about?"

Neil's hand flew up protectively to his side. "Didn't think you noticed."

"You change with your door open," Todd replied, matter-of-factly.

"It's from a stupid accident three years ago. Five stitches." Neil's brows were furrowed. Why did they keep on ending up on subjects he didn't want to talk about? "Anyways, your turn!"

Todd let the topic go, thankfully, albeit with a look of suspicion. "Hmm. Oh, here's one: what am I allergic to?"

"Easy: perfumes. And that is why we scour the whole grocery for fragrance-free products. And public speaking."

Todd punched him on the shoulder. Neil only laughed.

* * *

_Only his mom came to meet us,_  Todd thought. Looking at Neil, he thought that the brunet would be heartbroken, but he only seemed relieved.

"You must be the one taking care of my son!" exclaimed the woman right after she was done fussing over Neil, who was actually in the middle of introducing them. She opened her arms out and came in for a hug. Todd was so surprised that it took a long beat for him to hug back. Todd looked at Neil worriedly, but Neil just shook his head with a grin.

"If I'm getting this right, you live in the same apartment already, yes?" asked Mrs. Perry, pulling back.

"Yes, we've been roommates since three years ago," answered Todd as the woman held him at an arm's length.

"And you fell in love! How romantic," Mrs. Perry gushed. "Oh, I'm forgetting my manners; I'm Grace Perry, nice to meet you, Todd."

"Nice to meet you, too, Mrs. Perry," greeted Todd with a small smile.

"Oh, please, call me Grace! We're going to be related to each other soon anyways," said Grace, leading the boys back to her pick-up truck. Todd felt a guilty pang in his chest as they boarded the car, with Neil taking the front seat with his mother. Should they really be doing this?

"I cancelled your hotel reservation, by the way," said Mrs. Perry nonchalantly. "Family should stay with family."

 _Great. She's so nice. I can't possibly lie to her face the whole goddamn weekend,_ Todd thought before replying, "Oh, that's alright."

"You could have called, mom," Neil protested.

"Well, I thought I'll disturb you so I didn't!"

Todd listened in briefly to the mother and son's banter, but he eventually tuned them out. He felt strange, like he was the only puzzle piece out of place. He looked out the window to distract himself. And fortunately enough, the sight out the window  _did_  distract him a huge deal.

Despite it only being four in the afternoon, it was already dark out. But this shouldn't surprise Todd that much; they were well into December. What shocked him most was the signage on the stores. Most of the shops they passed by in the town had 'PERRY' clearly plastered on them; the internet cafe, the hardware store, the diner, the boutique.... Todd rubbed his eyes and looked again. They were still passing by stores with his supposed fiancé's name on them.

Once they got off the truck, Todd was so ready to pull Neil aside and corner him until he spat out an explanation, but then he saw the boat they were going to ride in. "You... you ride a speedboat to go to your house?" He asked, dumbstruck.

Grace laughed as she climbed down the stairs. "Neil didn't tell you? He's just being modest. Come on now, give me your bags."

A thousand questions swirled in Todd's mind as he passed down the luggage. Why was Neil living in that box of an apartment with him in New York when he has a fucking  _kingdom_  back here in Alaska? And all those times they feared getting booted out of their place because they couldn't pay rent on time.... Todd couldn't see why Neil wanted to avoid talking about this place, except for the reason that he wanted to avoid paying the bills.

Todd shook his head as if to banish the thoughts away from his mind.  _Neil would never let me shoulder most of the bills if he could help it. I'm just over-thinking. Right. Just over-thinking._

The boat ride to their house would've been more pleasant if Todd had night vision goggles. But alas, daylight was getting scarce, and Todd barely saw anything that was five feet away from him. He saw the Perry family's house, though, bright and clear. It was this huge white wooden house with blue grating for a roof. The lights inside were on, and the exterior was generously decorated with Christmas lights and luminescent reindeer. The water surrounding the island reflected the lights beautifully. Everything looked like something out of a December issue of Architectural Digest.

Todd nervously played with his ring as they walked up to the house. He was getting married to a goddamn  _prince_.

Unsurprisingly enough, Grace showed them to their room which contained one king-sized bed. Neil started to protest again, but his mother wagged her finger at them.

"Come on now," said Mrs. Perry. "I'm in no delusion that you don't sleep in the same bed. You live in the same apartment, Neil. You're not fooling anyone. Now, get ready, the guests will be arriving in an hour."

"Um, g-guests?" stuttered Todd.

"Yes, dear," affirmed Grace, beaming widely. "Everyone knows everyone in this little town of ours, and they all missed Neil, so we decided to hold a little soirée. See you both in an hour!"

Then the door was shut and Neil and Todd were alone.

"Look, we don't have to sleep in the same bed if you don't want to—" started Neil.

"Neil, we slept in the same bed for the first three months we lived in that minuscule apartment and now is the time you're going to go gay chicken on me?" Todd countered, starting to unpack. "And there is no couch in sight. You're not sleeping on the floor."

Neil smiled. "Yessir."

* * *

"Neil, my man!" crowed a man decked out in a waiter's suit once Neil and Todd headed out into the little party. He set down the tray of appetizers - which were sea urchin sashimi put on carefully-cut slices of cucumber - on the nearest end table.

"Charlie!" greeted Neil as they clasped hands and hugged each other briefly. Todd hovered by awkwardly.

"Rumor has it, you got engaged," said Charlie with a smirk, giving Todd a once-over.

Neil stepped back and wrapped an arm around Todd's shoulders. "Yes, I did. This here's my fiancé, Todd Anderson."

Todd Anderson smiled and shook the hand that Charlie held out. "Nice to meet you."

"Neil got lucky with you, Todd. How'd he manage to land you?" Charlie asked unabashedly.

Todd flushed up to his ears and started stuttering. (Neil found that so unbelievably adorable.)

"I got my ways, Dalton. Anyways," said Neil, changing the subject for Todd's sake. "How's Sitka been, slick?"

"Keen," replied Charlie mysteriously, lifting the tray once again. "Now, care for some hors d'oeuvres, or not? Because believe it or not, I'm not getting paid to talk to you."

Neil laughed, his arm still on Todd's shoulders as he got one and popped it into his mouth. "Delishus. Thank you, Chahlie."

"You're welcome," said Charlie, now heading to another part of the room. Another waiter passed them by and Neil managed to swoop up two glasses of champagne with one hand.

"Gee, your family sure knows how to spend," Todd quipped as he sipped from the glass, warming up to the unfamiliar feeling of Neil's arm on his shoulders.

"Yeah, they're a rich lot," Neil agreed.

"So why did you leave?" Todd asked curiously.

"For his acting career, he said," explained a man behind them. Regrettably, turning around to see who it was meant Neil slipping his arm away from Todd's shoulders.

"Father," mentioned Neil, stiffening visibly. Todd bristled at the obvious tension between the two men.

"This must be Toddie," said the tall Mr. Perry.

"Todd," corrected the blond. Only his brother called him that stupid nickname, and it was in jest.

"What's your line of work, Todd?" asked the old man suddenly.

"Um, I'm an editor at Colden Books back in New York." Todd answered, not quite sure what to make of the question.

Neil's father nodded in understanding. "I've heard of the company. Does it pay well?"

Todd barked out a laugh. "It pays enough."

"So I'm guessing thanks are in order. I'm sure you've been providing for my son these past few years."

"Dad," warned Neil in a tone that Todd only heard him use on noisy neighbors. Mr. Perry downed his glass in one go.

"Looks like I need a refill," said the old man, walking away.

"I've been wondering what made you not want to talk about home," started Todd, "and I think I know now."

"Neil, Neil, hi!" greeted another voice. It was a girl of their age who didn't look menacing at all, this time.

"Ginny! Wow, uh, hi," Neil said, taken aback. "And Chris. Hi."

The women named Ginny and Chris had their arms locked together.

"I'm Ginny Danburry, hello," said the woman with tight brown curls. She held her hand out for Todd to shake, so he did.

"And I'm Chris Noel," said the taller woman with a blonde bob. She held out her left hand, brandishing her pretty silver ring and the little diamond on it.

Todd had no choice but to shake with his left, too.  _So they're married,_ Todd thought, suspicions confirmed when he looked over at Ginny's left hand.  _Well, at least we're not the only same-sex couple here. It felt like we were holding up the damn pride flag._ "Todd Anderson, nice to meet you both," he said, smiling.

"So, did we miss the story?" Ginny inquired.

"Um, what story?" Todd asked, confused.

"The proposal story!"

Neil, who had been quiet for a while, suddenly spoke up. "Has mom told everyone we're engaged?"

"She told  _us_  when she invited us over," explained Chris. "I'm afraid she was too excited to keep the news to herself.”

"Well, you still have to tell the story! She didn't tell us at all," Ginny said with an excited twinkle in her eye.

Neil scratched the back of his head. "Well, it's not much of a story to tell at all, but _—_ "

Charlie passed by with a tray full of champagne glasses now. Ginny got one and clinked her ring loudly against it. "Neil and Todd's about to tell the proposal story, everybody!"

And just like that, they were put in the spotlight. Everybody in the room turned to stare at them, even the waiters. The room was still.

Todd tried to gulp down his anxiety along with the champagne in his hand. Neil laughed nervously.

"It's actually nothing special at all," started Neil after he cleared his throat. Todd was drumming his fingers on his empty glass, his ring occasionally clinking against it. "As all of you must know, being an actor in New York is tough work, so I'm not especially rich. So don't expect anything grand. We were just having dinner. No, it wasn't dinner at any fancy restaurant or a five-star hotel. It was just some Chinese takeout from that cheap little place down our street, which we were eating in our apartment."

Once it dawned on Todd that Neil was actually going to tell them the real proposal story sans the deportation and fraud parts, he looked at Neil like he had suddenly grown another head. Neil gave him a side glance and a wink.

"We were talking about how each other's days went, just like normal," continued Neil. "Okay, note that I wasn't even thinking about proposing. It was just like any other day. But do you ever have those moments when you look at this person and think, 'Wow, I'm so in love. You're so beautiful and I'm so in love with you.' That was exactly what I felt at that moment. The feeling was so overwhelming that I blurted out the big question without even thinking about it. It was so casual and spontaneous. 'Pass me the soy sauce.' 'Here you go.' 'Hey, do you wanna maybe get married?' Todd laughed so hard that I feared he was going to reject me. But, here we are."

As the crowd clapped and shouted their congratulations at them, Todd turned to Neil. "I see you conveniently left out the part where you proposed to me with a ring made out of chopstick wrappers."

"Psh, they don't need to know that. You can tell a lot from a man by the way he proposes, y'know."

Then, someone started to chant, "Kiss! Kiss! Kiss!" It was probably Charlie.

Neil turned his head to Todd. "We don't have to do this—"

"Gay chicken again?" Todd teased.

"If you call me that again, I swear to god," mumbled Neil under his breath after downing the whole of his champagne and taking Todd's head in his hands.

Todd's own hands flew up to cover Neil's as the brunet closed in and kissed him. When the people started clapping and hollering all around them, Todd felt Neil lick and nip his bottom lip before letting go. Needless to say, Todd was so stunned he didn't do anything to counter him.

Neil smirked at him. "Am I still a gay chicken?"

Todd didn't say anything in reply; he didn't know what might come out of his mouth. He was sure his face was beet red judging by the way it heated up.

* * *

The welcoming party ended quarter past ten. Much to Todd's surprise, the night passed by in a whirl. With the pleasant buzz from champagne and comfortable human interaction, Todd almost felt like he fit in.

He chatted with Chris and Ginny,  who were possibly the friendliest people he had ever met, the whole time. Neil was a little subdued around them, but Todd figured he would let Neil tell him what's up rather than asking. Mr. Perry was the wet blanket to Mrs. Perry's bonfire, but she burned brightly enough all the same. He even got introduced to new people, like Neil and Charlie's high school friend, Knox Overstreet, and Ginny's older brother, Chet. Todd felt like he just got introduced to a huge family, albeit the weird tensions here and there. But what was family without the hidden agendas, right?

But by the end, the guilt still sat down on his chest like an old cat who refused to move. He felt bad having to lie to them about everything. The only real things they probably knew about him were his name and occupation.

"-odd? Are you there?"

Todd looked at Neil, who was slipping into the right side of the bed. Todd was already seated comfortably inside the thick covers. "Yeah, sorry. Did you want to tell me something?"

"Yeah, actually," Neil said, looking a bit troubled as he settled down.

Todd turned the lamp on his side off and lay back on the pillows. There were too many of them. "What is it?"

"You met Ginny and Chris, right?"

"Yeah. They're nice. I'm glad we're not alone, if you get what I mean."

Neil chuckled as he turned off the light beside him. Only the moon lit their room now. "Yeah, I get what you mean. They're getting married this weekend actually."

"What? Are we going to attend their wedding?"

"It's on Sunday morning, so yes?"

"I didn't bring a suit!"

"You can borrow from me."

"You're taller than me."

"Mom can alter it. And you're not much shorter than I am."

"You're literally three inches taller than me."

"Is that a big deal?"

"Yes!"

"Like I said, mom's a genius at altering clothes, so don't worry."

"Okay. Okay, back to what you were saying."

"I just wanted to share that... um. Did you know that Chris used to date Knox and Chet?"

"So that explains the tense vibes," Todd hummed.

"Yeah. And... I was like that."

"You used to date Chris, too? I'm guessing you have a preference for blondies, huh?" Todd joked.

"No! Ugh, Todd," complained Neil with a laugh. "It's Ginny.  _She_  used to date me."

"Really?" Todd turned serious. "What happened?"

"We had a...  _conflict_  of interest. I actually got down on one knee right after we graduated and asked her to go to New York with me. She chose that moment to come out of the closet."

"Ouch."

"Yeah."

"...Thanks for telling me."

"'S not much. It'll probably be useful for the interview on Monday, anyway."

Todd shifted onto his side and propped himself up with an elbow. "No, I'm serious. I mean, you barely talk about this place and I felt like... like I was doing something wrong."

"I... I'm sorry," Neil said, turning his body to face Todd. "I had no idea you felt like that. But it wasn't you. I promise."

Todd sighed through his nose and smiled a gentle smile. "I know. I get it. And I'm not going to make you promise to reveal everything, so don't worry. I just want you to feel comfortable with telling me things."

Then Todd lay back down on the pillows that seemed to devour him inch by inch. He was close to blacking out when Neil spoke up.

"My dad doesn't want me to become an actor. He never did."

Todd's eyes fluttered open.

"He wanted me to inherit the family business. He made me major in business management here and I grew miserable overtime. Mom hated him for it. I remember her saying something about how she didn't want for me to get trapped in a role I detested. I couldn't sleep at night because he and mom fought about me all the time.

"In the end, mom paid for the flight I got onto for New York just six years ago, before I entered my fourth year. She helped me with my apartment until I found a steady job that I could manage alongside the auditions. I saved money by using a bike for transportation. It could've been better, but it was good. I had three meals a day.

"But New York isn't exactly the best place for cyclists. I got into an accident with a taxi. That's where I got the scars. I had to call home to ask for help for the hospital bills, but it was dad who picked up the phone. He was furious. He said that he'd only give me the money if I went back here. I didn't have much of a choice, so I uprooted my life in New York and went back.

"Mom and dad fought again while dad let me try my hand at managing our business. I hated the two months that I stayed here, with everybody looking at me like I was something they had to feel sorry for. I hated it. My fallout with Ginny didn't help either. So I came back to Brooklyn on my own, and that's when Pitts and Meeks introduced us. ...You know the rest."

When Todd didn't answer immediately, Neil rolled onto his side to see if he was still awake.  

"I'm here," murmured Todd.

Neil smiled down at him. Todd thought he looked grand like that, with the moonlight making his cheekbones more pronounced and some of his hair falling forward. "Well, there you have it. My tragic back story."

"Ooh, I do so love men with dark pasts," Todd replied, a smile ghosting on his lips.

"Unbelievable," exclaimed Neil, turning back with a laugh.

Todd reached for Neil's hand in the dark and held it. "Hey. Thanks. I'm serious."

Todd heard him snort, but he felt Neil squeeze his hand. "I should be the one thanking you. That felt nice to get off of my chest."

Quite ridiculously, no one wanted to let go of neither's hand, and so they didn't.

* * *

Neil woke up to a drastically different scene. Half of his body was on Todd's, with their legs all tangled up and his ear on his chest so he heard the slow thumping of his sleeping heart.

Neil panicked for a second, but he decided that the warmth against the Alaskan chill was enough reason for when Todd woke up. It probably won't hold up much since he was Alaskan himself, but it'll have to do.

He looked for the clock on Todd's end table. It was only half past seven in the morning, which explained the dark skies. He was about to close his eyes to try and get some more sleep, but the knocking on the door jerked him awake.

"Breakfast for the happy couple!" said the voice from the other side, which Neil identified as his mother's.

Neil regretfully broke away from Todd's furnace of a body, careful to not wake him up. He fumbled around in the dark as he made his way towards the door.

"Mom, Todd's still asleep." Neil yawned once he opened the door. The smell of freshly-baked waffles wafted into the room.

"He won't be once he tries my specialty!" exclaimed Grace, holding out the source of the smell. It was a full breakfast for the both of them: two golden-brown waffles with half-melted butter on top and the syrup on the side and a whole pot of coffee to match.

Neil kissed his mother's forehead as he took the tray from her. "Happy birthday, mom. Love you."

"Me too," replied Grace, beaming up at her son. "Now enjoy, but not too much! I have a surprise for Todd once he's up and running. You don't get to keep my future son-in-law all to yourself."

Neil chuckled. "I'll be sure to tell him," said he, closing the door with his foot.

When he turned around, Todd was already turning on the lamp on his side. "What is that  _delicious_  smell?" he asked while he stretched his limbs.

"Cheese waffles and coffee," answered Neil as he walked over to their bed. Todd hummed in approval. "My mom prides herself on making the best waffles ever and I have to say: they  _are_  pretty great." Neil placed the tray beside Todd and crawled in front of it so that he was also facing Todd.

"My brother used to make some mean waffles so I have some pretty high—"

Neil interrupted Todd by stuffing a small slice into his mouth.

Todd glared at him, but started chewing. "Hey, these  _are_  pretty great," commented he, thoughtful.

"Right? And that's  _without_  the syrup." Neil huffed proudly, pouring them both a cup of coffee.

The meal was eaten with light conversation and banter, just like any other breakfast they've had, except that there was no rush to go to work.

"Hey, let's watch the sunrise," suggested Todd once they finished their waffles. "I haven't done that in like, forever."

"Yeah, I think the last time I did that was a year ago. When we had that New Year's Eve party at Pitts' penthouse."

Todd broke out into laughter. "And none of us were sober. Come on, I bet we can watch it at the balcony." He stood up with his mug of coffee in one hand, and Neil's in the other.

Neil didn't want to lose contact, and so he followed. They opened the door to the balcony, the cold air sweeping in. Todd shivered, so Neil put his arm around him.

 _It's just to keep him warm, nothing more,_  Neil thought as he created friction on Todd's arm with his hand.  _And besides, if Todd minded it, he's not saying anything to protest. So maybe he doesn't mind._ And maybe was enough for Neil.

Both of them leaned on the wooden railing, sipping coffee in companionable silence, as they waited for the sunrise. The sky wasn't clear of clouds given the current season, but it didn't take anything away from the beauty that the warm orange and yellow hues the sun provided.

"There it is," whispered Todd, as if the moment was something sacred he didn't want to destroy by talking too loudly. They watched the huge star inch up slowly from the horizon. "It's so beautiful."

Neil stole a glance at the man tucked in his arm, who was so entranced by the view that he didn't realize he was just as beautiful as any other sunrise. The blue of his eyes were reminiscent of the twilight sky, and his skin and hair looked almost golden against the sunlight. He quickly came to a realization. "And so are you," murmured Neil, putting his mug down on the railing.

Todd turned towards him with a faint blush on his cheeks and a 'thank you' on his lips that barely made it out. Without a warning, Neil enclosed him in a hug and and put his mouth against his, because  _fuck_ , he was only human after all. The air was sharp, his heart was beating a hundred times a second, Todd tasted like waffles, and he was only human.

And Todd sighed into his mouth and wrapped his arms around Neil's neck, as if a long-said prayer had just been answered, and fuck if that doesn't do anything to add to the warmness that was comfortably coiled in the bottom of Neil's stomach.

Neil reached down and hefted Todd up from the ground, making the blond drop his mug on the floor by accident. Both of them giggled against each other's lips. Neil apologized by holding him closer and kissing him harder.

Todd ran his cold fingers through Neil's hair and his legs around his hips. Neil hastily closed the sliding doors behind them, with Todd's tongue curling around his own making it difficult for him to do so. Neil couldn't exactly see where they were going, what with Todd's being enveloping him from all sides, so it was too late before he realized that his knees had already bumped against the bed. Both of them fell disastrously, teeth clashing against teeth and bones hitting muscle. Luckily enough, the tray full of tableware wasn't in the way; it only clattered noisily. That was enough for Neil to second guess himself.

When Neil pulled back, he could've sworn Todd tried to follow him with his mouth. "Are you sure about this?" He asked, breathing quite heavily, hands on Todd's thighs.

Todd pressed Neil against him with his feet. Neil's breath hitched at the contact. "I'm pretty sure we're both sure about this," exhaled Todd, pupils blown wide and face flushed. Neil absentmindedly licked his lips. "I know for a fact that the both of us haven't gotten laid in a long time."

Neil laughed breathily as he started to pull off his shirt. "Did you really have to bring that up?"

"It was to emphasize my point," replied Todd cheekily.

Once Neil had discarded his shirt to the side, Todd let his legs down and sat up to kiss the huge scar on Neil's torso. He kissed his hipbones, his belly button, and all the places in between, all the while palming Neil's erection through his sweatpants.

A shudder ripped through Neil's spine, and he was sure it wasn't because of the cold. He stilled Todd's hands once they started to take off his jogging pants. He cupped Todd's face in his hands and kissed him slowly and surely as he brought them down on the bed again. "Slow. Down. Or. I'll. Come. Without. You," he whispered in between kisses, their breaths mingling whenever Neil pulled away to talk.

So Todd slowed down, which gave Neil's hands the opportunity to take his shirt off. Neil, holding himself up with one arm, reached down Todd's boxers and wrapped his fingers around his cock. Todd inhaled sharply, his fingernails on Neil's shoulders digging into freckled skin. Their mouths being connected, Neil couldn't do anything but breathe into Todd.

Todd broke their kiss once Neil got into a steady rhythm. Neil felt lost, his swollen lips feeling cold, until he felt Todd pulling off his pants with his feet. Neil let him go as far as touching his cock before gently prying Todd's wandering hand away.

"What the hell, Neil—"

Neil felt Todd's body jerk against him as soon he joined the two of them in one hand and stroked. He drowned Todd's moans and mewls in kisses. He felt it building up in his lower back, felt it coming, and he couldn't fucking stand how Todd's tongue swirled in his mouth, so he broke them apart and instead put his head on the crook of Todd's neck. He felt Todd move his body to match Neil's rhythm, felt Todd's fingernails scraping his back and his chest. The precome made it quicker and easier, and he didn't want it to be over that soon, but  _holy shit_ —

Neil saw stars as he came, and  _Jesus Christ_ , it felt like the fucking planets aligned. He exhaled loudly after a seemingly long moment of holding his breath in. He felt boneless, and he was afraid he wasn't going to get Todd off with his faltering hand.

But soon enough, Neil felt Todd arching up against him as he came, heard a delicious litany of curses being whispered right into his ear. Neil shivered as Todd pulled him into another kiss. It was slower and less needy this time, but Neil thought it was just as pleasurable.

"You're so pretty," whispered Neil against Todd's lips as he let go of his cock. His hand was sticky with come, so he took care not to touch Todd with it.

"Oh really," replied Todd in disbelief.

"I'm serious," Neil said, propping himself up on Todd's side with an arm. There was a strong urge to brush Todd's hair back.

"Is that why we just..." Todd trailed off, but Neil got what he was trying to say.

"If that was the only reason, we would've done that a long time ago." Todd blushed and Neil couldn't help but smile. He continued, feeling brave. "I think this whole thing made me realize you're something else than a friend."

Todd smiled. "Me too. ...Sooo what now?" asked he tentatively, playing with Neil's hair. It felt wonderful and so he leaned into his hand.

"Now... now, I think we're dating. Are you... okay with that?"

Todd nodded slowly. "I don't think we can go back to just being friends after... all of that."

Neil dramatically gasped. "Pitts and Meeks will have won!"

Todd laughed softly. "And so we've lost. At least we gained something out of it."

"Yeah. Now we're dating.  _Wow_. That feels weird to say." Neil said. He rolled the term around in his mouth. "I'm  _dating_  Todd Anderson. Wait, I think I should be practicing 'I'm  _marrying_  Todd Anderson instead.'"

Todd laughed again, and then turned serious. "What about that?"

"What about what?"

"The marriage."

"Oh! Well, I guess we keep up the charade. Then when we come back to New York, we plan for our wedding."

"You mean we're actually going to get married."

"If that's what it takes to keep you in this country."

Todd smiled, but he didn't let up. "No, like. I meant, are we  _still_  going to get divorced right after I arrange my documents?"

"Do you  _want_  to get divorced?" asked Neil, careful to keep his voice even. "I don't want to force you into anything real."

"I  _want_  to continue whatever this is, because for me... it's real. And I don't think much will change after we get married, really. We're still going to live in that apartment together. It's just that... I feel like this whole thing's built on lies."

Neil said nothing, but he silently agreed.

"But I don't have anyone else lining up for me, and I'm not waiting for anyone in particular. Twenty-seven seems like a good age to get married. Also, divorces are really expensive. If you hate me by the time we get richer, then feel free to get a quickee divorce."

Neil laughed. "I'll take you up on your offer."

"If our consciences are still intact by the time we fly back to New York, I'll be surprised," murmured Todd. Then he pointed down to his stomach, where the come was just starting to dry up. "Clean me up?"

"Of course." Neil got up gingerly - he still felt boneless - and pulled his boxers up. He figured he could abandon the sweatpants. He dampened a wash cloth in the bathroom and walked back to Todd, who also put his boxers back on. He sat down beside him, so that his back was in full display for Todd to see. "It's a bit cold, so bear with me."

While Neil wiped the come off of his stomach, he felt Todd trace something on his back. "Has anyone ever told you these freckles look like constellations? Your scars make it seem like they're connected to each other. You actually have a whole universe on your body."

Neil never really felt secure about those marks nor his scars, so the thought that Todd was examining them closely right now made him feel uneasy. He turned to look at Todd just as he finished cleaning. "Is that a good thing?"

"It's the most beautiful thing in this wide expanse of rocks and void and stars," Todd affirmed, sitting up with one of his hands still on Neil's back. Upon hearing those words, something in Neil's chest died and came back to life. "Now, despite your careful cleaning, I still feel like I have to shower. You comin'?"

Neil grinned. "You bet I am."

* * *

After an hour in the shower, it dawned on Neil that he forgot to tell Todd about his mother's surprise, whatever it was.

Neil looked down and saw Todd looking back up at him. The sight sent shivers down his spine. "Todd," He managed, turning the shower off so that Todd could hear him. "I forgot to tell you that - ah! - Mom's taking you out for a surprise."

Todd pulled back slowly. Neil gritted his teeth. "Now?" Todd asked, standing up from the wet tiles. "Then I should probably start dressing up."

Neil held onto Todd's wrist before he could turn away. "I'm sure it's a little bit later," he growled, his voice low and his eyes dark.

Todd smirked and knelt back down.

* * *

When Todd and Neil came out for lunch, their hands were pruny and their hair was wet.

* * *

Todd was a bit scared when he and Grace met Chris and Ginny in town, mainly because they looked like they were keeping a secret from him. Which they were, actually. No one told him where they were going after they went to the town's resident boutique to alter his suit for tomorrow, even though he's asked them numerous times. He was right to be scared. He learned that when they entered a seemingly innocent little bar, because inside, it was a raging strip club for women (and some men, Todd observed).

Todd averted his eyes from the dancing, half-naked man on the stage and instead looked at Neil's mother, horrified. "We're spending your birthday  _here_?"

Grace only laughed at him and ordered a round of margaritas.

"Oh, Grace is a firecracker, Todd. You'll see," commented Ginny, a huge grin on her face as she leaned on Todd's chair.

"Are you guys actually, um,  _okay_  with this?" asked Todd once the music died down and the buff dancer exited the stage.

"I'm bisexual," explained Chris. She jerked her thumb at Ginny. "And Ginny wanted to go with you guys."

"How about Neil?" asked Todd. "Why didn't he come along?"

"Well, about that—"

Suddenly, the music boomed back. Todd heard the crowd cheering once a spotlight turned to a black curtain. Even Mrs. Perry was hollering. Then from the curtain a hand emerged to slowly open it, revealing a familiar face.

"Is that..."

"This is why Neil wasn't invited," Ginny said. "It would make things slightly weird."

Behind the curtain was a smirking Charlie Dalton, clad in a sleeveless tuxedo. Todd couldn't believe his eyes, even when he started dancing provocatively to the loud music. He saw a woman come up to the stage to give him a dollar. Charlie leaned down and bit the dollar from her hand. More screaming ensued.

Their margaritas arrived and Todd sipped it nervously.

"Over here! Over here!" Grace shouted, waving a wad of bills on her hand. Charlie looked over and started heading to their table. Todd couldn't believe Grace was going to get a lap dance from her son's friend.

Then Todd felt Ginny wrapping something around his neck. "What is this?" Todd asked, reaching up to feel it for himself. He felt like he was asking so much questions tonight.

"What, you thought we brought you here for nothing?" Chris teased, laughing.

As Charlie neared them, Todd realized what it was: a bowtie.

"Oh, no. No, no. No no no," Todd repeated, shaking his head.

"Yes!" The three women urged, with Ginny and Grace putting their hands on his shoulders and slightly pushing.

Charlie, in the meanwhile, pretended to wrap a rope around Todd and pulled. He was clearly having fun with this.

Todd remembered being pushed off his seat by the women beside him, and the next thing he knew he was sat on the chair placed in the middle of the stage, being screamed at by his companions to smack Charlie's ass. Charlie's ass, in the meanwhile, was being wagged in front of him. It seems that Charlie already took off most of his clothing, leaving only the most revealing underwear Todd has ever seen in his whole life. The man was covered in an ungodly amount of body oil. Just as Todd thought it couldn't get worse, Charlie got on his lap. He had the most enormous grin, like he was enjoying the way Todd was so careful about keeping his hands to himself. Todd could feel himself passing out under the glaring light.

Todd couldn't believe he was actually getting a lap dance from his pseudo-fiancé's friend.

Something about that was really wrong.

Charlie leaned over to whisper something in his ear, but Todd didn't hear it, so he just gave him a confused look. Charlie laughed and finally stood up as the song ended.

Todd was so glad to be back at his seat that he didn't stop sipping his margarita until it was all gone.

"You're so red, Todd!" giggled Ginny.

"You looked like you were going to die up there," said Chris.

Todd heard Grace ordering another margarita for him.

* * *

"Whoa, who's that?" Neil asked as he came in the living room where his dad was watching television. He just got off the phone with his mom telling him about how Todd could handle his liquor, and he couldn't stop laughing when he heard Todd loudly asking in a slur if it was Neil on the other end. He was still feeling like he was on cloud nine and his guard was actually down. Not even his pissant of his dad was going to bring him down from his high. And besides, he  _still_  was his dad, no matter how much of a jerk he was.

"Who, this?" His dad asked, looking down on the small, white pomeranian under his hand. Tom smiled fondly and ruffled the dog's poofy fur. "This is Kevin. I bought him at the pet store for your mom."

"For her birthday?"

"Yep. You think she's gonna like him?"

Neil smiled. "Definitely."

Tom scooted over. "Hey, sit down. They're having a Back to the Future marathon on Fox."

"What, really?" asked Neil, quickly sitting down beside Kevin and his dad. The pomeranian yipped happily and curled up beside him. Sure enough,  _Back to the Future_   _III_  was onscreen. 

"This is the first film you ever watched. I remember your mother and I taking you the cinema," Tom recalled.

"Well,  _I_  can't remember. How old was I?"

"Two. You seemed to enjoy it back then, though, so I rented the first two at the store and we watched them."

Neil laughed. "I really don't remember. What I  _do_  recall is watching them with Charlie at his house back in high school."

Then both of them proceeded to watch the movie in easy silence, leaving Neil to forget about the tension between them, up until the credits rolled and his dad reached for the remote to turn the the TV off.

"Say, Neil, I've been going over my retirement plans recently, and it got me thinking," said Tom, his face serious. Neil tensed up. "I've done a lot of things in my life. Practically built an empire with your mother from the ground up. And it doesn't mean anything unless we have someone to leave it to."

"Dad," warned Neil. His father continued, anyway.

"Neil, you have responsibilities here. I think I've been more than understanding about your goofing off in New York. I need you to quit  _playing around_ —"

Neil sighed exasperatedly. "When are you going to start taking what I do more seriously?"

"When you start acting seriously," his father deadpanned. Neil felt miserable as he stood up from the couch. Kevin sat up and cocked his head at him.

"Look, dad, I'm sorry I can't be the son you want, okay? I realize that you've had fun doing what you did all these years. I realize that what you did provided us great things that acting may as well can't provide. And I wish that you had another child to stay here and take over for you, because that's not gonna be me. That's not what I want to do until I die. I am  _horrible_  at this. I don't wanna lie down on my deathbed regretting taking over for you and probably destroying everything. Now, memorizing lines, standing on stage, performing for a thousand people, that's what makes me feel  _alive_. And I am good at it, okay? I'm great at it."

Neil could hear the blood pounding in his ears and feel his heart hammering in his chest by the time he finished. He was about to walk out because he feared what might come out of his mouth the next second won't be pleasant at all, but his father didn't let the subject drop.

"You're about to marry someone else. Are you going to let him provide for you your whole life? That isn't how I raised you to be."

"God  _damn_  it, dad! You barely raised me at all," Neil shouted, feeling a vein pop on his temple. "You didn't let me do anything fun. You cancelled my club activities in high school, telling me to focus on my studies. The one time you let me do what I want was drama club and you didn't even come to see my play before you took me off that one, too!"

His dad stood up, towering over him. "And I should have taken you off of that silly club before you grew attached to it."

Neil gritted his teeth and balled his hands into fists. "If you think intimidating me into doing what you want is going to help, it's not. Todd and I are leaving tomorrow. Don't bother showing up at our wedding," he spat, storming out of the room.

* * *

Todd downed so many margaritas that by the time the club was closing he felt like he was going to actually pass out. Chris and Ginny held him up as they walked to the truck.

"Hey, did you guys spend your stag night there, too?" asked Todd absently. He wasn't sure it went out the way he wanted it to, though. Judging by the confused looks on the girls' faces and their laughter right after, it didn't.

"Just give up on trying to speak, Todd," Ginny said from his left side.

"You've lost your proper speech abilities an hour ago," Grace agreed from somewhere in front of him.

"Why aren't you guys smashed. Why am I the only one who's smashed. Not fair. Not fair," murmured Todd as they helped him get into the truck. He giggled, remembering. "This isn't good. Not good. 'M sorry, Mrs. Perry."

Grace seemed to get what he said, since she responded appropriately. "It's okay, Todd. At least I now know more about who my son is engaged to."

Todd snorted. "This is barely my good side. 'S not good."

Then Mrs. Perry turned on the radio, and Todd slipped into unconsciousness.

The next time he woke up was when he felt he was being carried. "Neil?" Todd asked, feeling warmth radiate on his chest from the back he was on. He tried to look around, but it only barely registered on his mind that they were already back at the house's docks.

"It's me," rumbled a familiar voice. Todd smiled and leaned into the warmth. "Did you have fun?"

"Your mom is rich. And wild."

Another voice chimed in. "I'm right here!"

Todd continued anyway. "Margaritas. And Charlie."

"Charlie? As in Charlie Dalton?"

Todd hummed in agreement. "Lap dance."

" _Mom_."

"He was the one on the stage when we got there!" Grace explained.

"Why did you take Todd to a strip club anyway? It's your birthday, for Christ's sake."

"Yeah, and it was fun, right, Todd?"

Todd closed his eyes, his head feeling heavy. "Smashed," was all he managed to get out. He heard them launch into another banter.

The next time he opened his eyes was when he felt Neil settle him down somewhere soft and cool. Just as Neil was about to pull away, Todd managed to put an arm around his neck through sheer willpower. "'M feelin' cold, and you're really warm," Todd said, a lazy smile on his face.

"Are you kidding me?" Neil asked, pulling away easily. He lifted Todd's legs and put them on the bed. "You're literally the hottest thing I have ever touched. Pun not intended at first, but it's true."

Todd giggled. "Let's do it."

"Do what?"

"Sex."

" _What?_  No."

"Yes."

"Aren't you tired?"

"Of you? Never."

" _Todd_." Neil dragged a hand down his face, but Todd saw him smiling. "You're drunk."

"So?"

"That's-that's dubious consent."

"It  _really_  turns me on when you use big words."

"Go to sleep," Neil said, taking off Todd's shoes and socks.

"Says you while you start stripping me," teased Todd as Neil helped him out of his jacket.

" _Go to sleep,_ " Neil repeated, getting Todd's jeans off and leaving him in his boxers.

Todd pouted. "Spoon me?" asked he, one last attempt at getting friction.

Neil kissed him on his forehead as he took Todd's ring off of his hand and put it on the table. "That I can do."

Todd was grinning from ear to ear when Neil turned off the lights and settled the both of them inside the blankets.

"Better?" Neil asked after putting his right arm around Todd's body.

Todd snuggled into the curve of his body. "So much better."

* * *

Todd woke up the next morning with a faint ache in the back of his head and his body feeling like a stone. He considered going back to sleep, since the blankets felt so comfortable around him and the pillows were just right, but he realized that Neil was no longer at his back. He slowly sat up while he felt around the bed for the other man, confused.

"Todd, you're awake. Good. I was just about to wake you up," Neil greeted as he came out from the comfort room. Todd held his breath at the sight.

"You're wearing a suit," breathed Todd. He had never seen the brunet ever wear a proper suit, even at his plays. He was always clad in something casual, like a sweater and jeans during winter or a shirt and some khaki shorts during the hotter days. The most formal Todd ever saw him was when he went to work, and that was a rolled up dress shirt without a tie along black skinny jeans. The fact that Neil had his hair slicked back was a definite plus.

Neil smiled. "Looks good, huh? But come on, it's only an hour before the wedding. It's your turn to shower."

Todd started to panic when it clicked. "I completely forgot about that!" He exclaimed as he rushed towards the bathroom as fast as he could. Unfortunately, he could only go so fast as his sluggish body would allow him. He felt his head spin. He called out to Neil as he turned on the shower. "Why didn't you wake me up earlier?"

"Well, you came home at midnight really drunk so I figured you could use the sleep."

Todd groaned. "Why did I have to drink so much...." He muttered to himself as he scrubbed shampoo on his hair.

"Bring out the toiletries with you once you come out, alright? I'm already packing since we're gonna leave for the airport right after the reception."

"Okay," Todd weakly called out, rubbing the soap on his body.

"Oh, and your own suit is already here. Mom brought it over earlier."

"Okay," Todd repeated. He heard Neil coming into the bathroom.

"I got you a towel."

"Thanks," replied Todd.

"...You done?"

"It's barely been three minutes! Calm down."

"Sorry! Sorry."

Todd frowned as he washed himself. He wiped the steam away from the glass to get a good look at Neil, who was leaning back on the sink. "Are you okay?"

Neil crossed his arms. "I am."

Todd turned away, unsatisfied with the answer. Once he was done, he got out of the shower and wrapped the towel Neil handed to him around his hips. "Really?" He asked again while he reached for his toothbrush, trying to seem nonchalant about it.

He heard Neil sigh heavily. "It's just that...." He trailed off and didn't continue until Todd spat the toothpaste from his mouth. "When you guys were away, dad and I got into another fight."

Todd didn't speak, figuring that he would say nothing that wouldn't seem like he pitied him or was forcing him. But it ended up with Todd putting on the suit with Neil helping him with it, wordless. So Todd spoke up as Neil adjusted his tie while Todd adjusted his own cufflinks. "What was it about?"

"The fight?"

"Yeah."

"...The usual. He wanted me to quit acting and live here in Sitka to manage the family business."

"He's really persistent about that, huh?"

"Yeah."

"And then what happened?"

"I ended up telling him to not come to our wedding. Horrible, I know."

"Actually, that's okay. He seems like a total douchebag."

"But before we got into that fight, he wasn't. He bought a dog for mom as a birthday present. It's this cute little fluffly ball of white fur. Mom loves dogs. And..." Neil's hands faltered as he fidgeted with Todd's tie. "He told me that Back to the Future III was my first ever movie. We watched it together on Fox last night. I can't believe he even...." Neil took in a shuddering breath, settling his hands on Todd's chest. "I didn't think he'd remember little things like that about me, y'know?"

Todd looked over to the side tables, remembering that Neil put their rings on one of them. He held Neil's hands in his own and led him towards it. "I acknowledge that he's still your father, and that he has some good moments," started Todd, picking up one ring from the pair. He wasn't sure if it was his or Neil's, but he didn't think it would matter. He slipped it on Neil's hand, and put on the other one on his own hand. "But if he makes you feel terrible about yourself, if he makes you feel wrong, then he doesn't deserve to be at our wedding. I'm sure your mother will understand if you'd explain."

Neil smiled sadly at him. "They'll probably fight about it, but thanks."

Todd placed a hand on the side of Neil's neck. "I'm sorry he makes you feel like shit."

"Me too."

* * *

The ride in the truck to the wedding was nerve-wracking for Neil, and he avoided meeting his father's eyes. It was good that he brought Kevin, since both Todd and Grace appeared to be fond of the dog, so that was the subject of the conversation for the whole trip. The wedding thankfully took place on a happier note in the town's church. Everybody's happy mood was infectious, and Neil couldn't help but be affected by it.

The reception at the resident hotel was so much more joyous. Ginny and Chris looked absolutely beautiful laughing in their white gowns as they cut their cake. Someone's aunt was crying, and someone else's uncle was getting drunk on the champagne quick. Children ran around as the respective maids of honor -- Gloria and Tina, were they? -- made their toasts. Knox and Charlie actually sat in the same table as Neil and Todd, along with some of the bridesmaids. The buffet was mostly seafood, as Neil rightly expected, but the chocolate and cheese fondue was something new.

"This is really extravagant," Todd commented after coming back from the dessert station for the third time. "I don't know if we'll be able to top this."

"Do you really want something huge like this?" Neil asked, looking at Charlie and Knox dancing with the bridesmaids.

Todd thought for a moment as he munched on his chocolate-coated strawberry. "Come to think of it, not really. I don't know if I can handle all the small talk and the attention."

Neil laughed. "And I don't think we'll be able to afford something like this," he said, gesturing at the entirety of the party. "So all's well?"

"But the fondue is nice. Maybe we can fit that in somewhere. Here, try some." Todd held another one of the chocolate strawberries in front of him. Neil bit down on it and chewed.

"That is nice. Alright, we're having one."

Then Neil heard something ringing. He checked his pockets. "Not mine," he confirmed, his phone's screen blank.

"It's mine," Todd said, a concerned look on his face. "It's my brother."

"The comfort rooms are at the end of the hall. It'll be quiet there."

"Alright, hang on," Todd said, standing up and taking the call.

Todd was gone for a long while, and in that time, Neil got chatted up by a few old friends. He quickly excused himself when Todd came back with an unreadable expression on his face, though.

"What was that about?" Neil asked.

"Do you remember Mr. Gilbertson?"

"Yeah, why?"

"Well, he wasn't joking about interrogating everybody. Apparently, he contacted my brother and Jeff's being... weird. He said he's coming to New York to meet you."

Now, it wasn't like Jeffrey Anderson was foreign to Neil. Todd  _did_  go back to Canada sometimes and  _was_  open about talking about his family. Neil also happened to have talked to Jeff whenever Todd was in the shower and told him to answer his phone. But Todd's family stayed in Toronto and rarely ventured to New York. So he's never actually met the guy in person. Now that he and Todd were involved, the idea of meeting his older brother seemed intimidating.

"What? When?" asked Neil nervously.

"This Christmas," answered Todd. "He's bewildered but... happy about it? I don't know how to explain it. He just asked me if what Mr. Gilbertson was saying was true and if I really was getting married. Then he started shouting 'finally!' again and again for a full minute. The next second, he announced that he was going to catch a flight to New York."

"Wow. Okay," Neil said, trying to absorb the information. "He's gonna stay at a hotel?"

"Do you want him to sleep on your foldable bed?"

"No!" Neil blurted out.

"Then hotel."

"But he's probably going to come over and visit, right? What do we do about our beds?"

"...Pretend we sleep separately?" Todd offered meekly.

"Even my mom expected that we sleep in the same bed, Todd." Neil reasoned. "And holy shit, I just realized that Mr. Gilbertson's probably asked Meeks and Pitts about this, too."

"Shit. We have to get back to arrange everything."

Neil looked at his watch. "Flight's in two hours. You wanna go?"

Todd nodded slowly. "Yes. Yes, I wanna go."

**Author's Note:**

> Part 2's hopefully coming sometime soon. Midterms are just right around the corner, so there's that. Maybe I'll catch a break soon to be able to write the next part. Wish me luck!


End file.
